Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1887-12-01
AnotherGreatFire ire
Sweeping Destruction Of
Buildings and Contents.
The Losers Generally Protected
by Insurance.
Narrow Escape from an I'M
menSe Conflagration.
The ProvIdential RAMA Splen-
did Battle with the Flames.

At exactly 5:45 o'clock last Friday mornin
the frantic whistling of the Baltimore an
Ohio locomotive brought people from thei
beds in hurry. The wild screams of tn
locomotive were kept up while the frightene.
people hurried through the dark strests to ih
center of town, the first out uncertain of tn
exact location o: the trouble. Soon smu X
and light in the rear of the building occu
pied by James Osborne as grocery, and up
stairs by Henry NJ. Thompson, were discover
ed. AT that time the blaze was small, anC
could have been extiDguished with Babcock
1t leaped up the rear of the building, undel
an outside stairway, and was soon in tbt
press room of The CaTs0SIoLE. In there tht
combustibles gave it great hcadway, and il
less than thirty minutes that building was
roaring mass o. flames.
The front door was burstel open before any
one arrived with key, by Dir. Tarbet, a SON
in-aw of Joseph W King, who found no ev
idence of fire in there Then the door of Os-
borne's grocery was bursied open. when q
great volume Of smoke mt him, and in q
moment the rear end OF the store was iu
flames. The smoke was SO dense that no at
tempt was made to remove any Of the goods,
except show case from the counter in the
front'of the building. Mr.. Thompson, his
wife, and little grandson escaped from the
rooms over the store with difficulty, and with
scarcely enough clothing to cover their ma,
kedness. George Green, wife and child,
living in the basement of the building adioin>
ing on the east, likewise escaped hurriedly
from the fire.
From the alley on the west of The CHRoNI>
GLE Office, to the large brick building east,
formerly the Union House, but now occupied
by DR.. John E. West, Auditor Barrett, and
Mrs. Jesse Bewley, all wooden buildings and
compactly built. With no appliances nor
facilities for fighting fire, these went in solid
procession. While they were burning the
heat was intense, especially in front of THE
CHRONICLE. Across the street the property
of Joseph " King and Mrs Zimmerman were
saved with great difficulty. The fronts were
scorched, and momentarily in danger of
bursting into flame. The roofs were covered
with carpets and salt. Men held their posi-
tions there with very great difficulty, and
suffered acutely from the heat, as did those
who operated upon the front. The latter.
with averted faces, hurried with the water
which they dashed upon the front, and then
away. For one hour this awful battle with
the heat and flames was kept up at that point.
and whenwerepert that the INSIDE of the doors
were blistered, the reader will appreciate the
awful heat they battled. At any time within
that hour, if neglected five minutes, Kings
front would have been in flames, and then the
square of wooden buildings adjoining it would
Lave followed.
The last building consumed WIS the dwell>
ing Of the Misses Close, a new structure.
This house was covered with tin roof, which
served to suppress the flames, and although
light wooden structure it burned slowly. The
house was pretty thoroughly stripped of its
contents before the fire reached it. While
1t was burning the fire was fought off the
brick building adjoining, occupied in the west
end by DR.. John E. West. Between them
there was narrow passage of about four feet,
with seven openings, and a shingle roof on
the West building. Bricks were hurriedly
wheeled and laid up in the door next the
md n lorr of .. =;
other. Men stationed themselves on each
floor, at the single opening in the attic, and
upon the roof. and successfully fought off the
fiIe. The roof at the end next the fire was
covered with blankets and salt. The struggle
at this point was heroic one, and was
watched with thrilling interest by the people
on the street. Southeast of 1t, and scarcely
twenty feet off, was a large S-story wooden
barn, filled with hay, and had the fire got into
that it would have added new terrore to the
contlagration.
West of the building occupied by The
CHRONICLE was part of an old wooden
building, which had been partially disman
tied. DR.. Hollingshead, pastor of the n.
Il. church, acted as fire marshal at this point,
and before the hsat had become too great,
under his direction and active assistance the
balance of it was torn down and removed,
thus possibly preventing the spread of the
fire in that direction. Across the alley is q
block of buildings bounded on the west by
the Nationel Hotel.
THE PROPRPTv nESTpoyun
Four buildings were entirely consumed.
belonging to Joel Nichols, Benjamin Dickey,
and the Closes, and DR.. West'sand JosephW.
Kings buildings seriously damaged by the
fire and water. The contents of THE CHRoN-
IoLE Office were entirely consumed. Except
a bundle of white paper, not scrap was got
out of the building. The contents of the safe
were fouEd in fair condition, upon opening it
ON Saturday. Beside the loss of his building,
Joel Nichols had two billiard tables on the
third f1eor benjamin DickeY lost two builds
irgs. and all the furniture in his dwelling.
The family was visiting at Mt. Gilead, Ohio,
at the time of the fire, and the house closed.
Uic insuranoa nolipieG warp in Tup CupONI~